Ignition and starting mechanism for internal-combustion engines.



L. B. CLARK. IGNITIoN AND STARTING MECHANISM FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES.

1,075,763. Patented 0ct.14,1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

APPLIOATION FILED FEBHY, 1913.

in newton L.B.GLARK. N IGNITION AND STARTING MECHANISM FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES. APPLICATION FILED FEB.7, 1913.

1,075,763. Patented 0ct.14,1913.

2 SHEBTS-SHEET 2.

Z1. 5 filaria.

Wirtmeooao 35 LOBEN CLARK, 0F MEADVILLE, EEIINSYLVANIA.

IGNITION AND STARTING MECHANISM FOR IliTEEBZ-IQ'AL-CQMB'USTION ENGINES.

rotates.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented @ct. 1 .1 1913.

Application filed February 7, 1913. Serial No. 746,865. I

To all whom it may 001.com:

Be it known that I, LonEN E. CLARK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Meadville, in the county of Crawford and s State of Pennsylvania, have invented new and useful Improvements in Ignition and Starting Mechanism for Internal-Combustion Engines, of which the following is a specification.

to This invention relates to ignition and starting mechanism for internal combustion motors, the broad object of the invention being to do away entirely with the use of batteries and the trouble arising therefrom,

15 it being well understood by engineers that approximately ninety per cent. of the trouble experienced in internal combustion motors comes from some fault or di'lliuilty in the batteries now in common use. Bah

2G teries have also been found to be unnecessarily expensive to maintain, whereas the mechanism of this invention is maintained at a minimum expense, and is always in working order for the purpose of generatin 25 an electric current and tra emitting the same to the spark plugs or other ignition points or devices.

With the above and other objects in view, the nature of which will appear in the fol- 39 lowing description, the invention consists in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out in 3 the claims hereunto appended.

In tlfe drawings: Figure 1 is a side clevation, partly broken away, of the me :hanism or apparatus of this invention. Fig. 2 is sitle elevation of the motor used for primarily actuating the shaft of the generator. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of tie rotor. Fig. -l is a sectional View oi the gove nor mechanism and the parts adjacent thereto. i ig. is an edge View of one of the frame mun 45 of the governor. Fig. is a cross s ion taken on the line 66 or #1. Fig. 7 is a detail View of one end of one 01'' the governor arms, showing the pr sser foot thereof.

Referring now to the drawings, 1 desig- 59 nates the generator wnieh may consist either of a dynamo or magneto, the same embody ing a shaft 2 which, in the case or dynamo or magneto, will be the armature shaft.

The. shaft 2 is extended considerably in 5.5 boiih'directions lbevmitl and outside of the casing of the generator, as clearly shown in Fig. 1, and to one end of said shaft is secured a rotor, illustrated in detail in Fig. 3, and shown conventionally as comprising an annular series of buckets or vanes 3, a rim i to which the same are secured, a hub 5 which may be keyed or otherwise fastened to the shaft 2, and a web or spokes 6 connecting the hub 5 and rim 4.

The rotor referred to is mounted. in a suit-- able casing which is liquid or fluid tight and is provided with two inlet nozzles 8 and 9, through either of which compressed air, water or the like may be admitted "for :he purpose of driving the rotor in either direc- 2 o tion, the casing being also provided with an outlet or exhaust nozzle 10.

T he motor illustrated in detail in in" and 3 is designed. to be driven either c. pressed air water under pressure, thereby causing the rotor to drive the shaft 2 at speed which will enable the generator 1 to produce an electric currentfor coi'iveying sparks to the ignition elements of an in ternal combustion motor (not shown). The 89 motor just hercinabove described is shown as bolted, at ii, to a flange or fixed collar it? on the sh t so that when not needed, the

3 motor as a whole may be detached a moved therefrom. l3 designates gr oil cups for supplying lubricant to th :2. fat the opposite side of the gene: the shaft 52 has mounted thereon a :3. wheel 14. This wheel is not he splined to the shat't 2, but may be be normally loose thereon. However. normal COilt'lltlOll, the wheel 1+2 is ally heid as to rotate with the shat be described. The wi L a nut 15, or any with the end from the wheel oi the generator l, a r inted on the shaft in ter said wheel hei 2 shown 1,13

1Q shaft by means o it". it i outer side of the ratchet i6 is a pawl carrier 18 having c ential ila on which is pii'ol al. ed a pawl ,0 which ges theft ratchet :el 16, and in this connection may be noted that the pawl 20 may be reversed or thrown entirely over the pivot 21 thereof, so as to operate in either direction in connection with the ratchet wheel 16.

The wheel 14 is provided at its inner side with a friction face 22, while the pawl carrier 18 is provided on its adjacent side with ed on the shaft 2 in spaced relation to each other, as best illustrated in Fig. 4. The member 25 is provided on its outer side with a friction face plate 26 adapted to work in contact with the friction face 22 on the wheel 14, and the member 24 is provided with a corresponding disk-shaped friction face plate 27 which is adapted to cooperate with the friction face 23 of the pawl carrier 18. The members 24 and 25 are normally pressed apart by means of a coiled expansion spring 28 surrounding the shaft 2 and bearing terminally against said frame members 24 and 25.

Each of the frame members 24 and 25 is provided with a combined bracket and guide arm 29 extending substantially parallel to the shaft 2 and having its end slotted, as

shown at 80, to receive one of a pair of governor arms 31, each of which is threaded, as shown at 32, to receive a weight or ball 33 -which is internally threaded to engage the threaded portion 32 of the arm, thereby providing for moving the weight 33 nearer to or farther from the pivotal point of the governor arm. Each governor arm is connected to the arm 29 of one of the frame members by means of a pivot 34 passing through the slot 30, above referred to, and each arm is provided at the end Opposite the weight 33' with a curved presser foot 35, the extremity of which is rounded, as shown at 36, and lies in sliding contact with the outer face of onev of the frame members 24.

By reference to' Figs. 1 and 2, it will be observed that one of the governor arms is pivot-ally connected to one of the frame members, while the other governor arm is similarly connected to the other frame member. Therefore, under the centrifugal action of the governor arms, the frame members 24 and 25 are pressed toward each other, overcoming the tension of the expansion spring 28 and relieving the frictional engagement between the frame members of the governor and the friction faces of the wheel, 14 and pawl carrier 18. Atany speed below a certain predetermined speed, however, the spring 28 is of sufficient strength to maintain the frictional-engagement between the governor frame members and wheel 14 and pawl carrier 18, under which condition the wheel 14 and thepawl carrier 18 are maintained indriving engagement with the shaft 2. w From the foregoing description, it will now be understood that when the speed of the fly wheel of the internal combustion motor, in contact with which fly wheel the frict'ion wheel 14 operates, reaches a point above the proper speed at which to drive the generator 1, the governor arms, by centrifugal action, will move outwardly, so as to compress the spring 28 and effect a disengagement between the friction wheel 14 and the shaft 2. This prevents driving the armature shaft of the dynamo and magneto at too high a speed.

- 'When the internal combustion motor is at rest, air or water under pressure is admitted to the auxiliary motor casing 7, and this motor then serves to take up and drive the shaft 2 at a speed which will generate the necessary current in the dynamo or magneto 1, thereby furnishing the necessary spark to ignite the explosive mixture in the combustion chamber of the engine. As soon as the engine has been started by hand, for example, the sparking apparatus will take care of itself, and after the engine is running under its own power, the motor 7 may be thrown out of operation by cutting off the inflowing air or water under pressure.

The mechanism may also be used as a starter for one or more engines, by removing the friction wheel 14 and ratchet wheel 16, and throwing the motor? into operation, and turningthe engine either by hand or by any other means, until the first explosion has been obtained. 1 When the engine has attained suff cient speed, the electric current will be transferred by a suitable switch from the starter to the current furnished by the magneto driven by the engine being started.

While I have only referred to the friction wheel 14 as being placed in driving engagement with the fiy wheel of the internal combustion motor, it will, of course, be apparent that the wheel 14 maybe driven by a belt,

sprocket, or other driving mechanism from v the shaft or other rotating part of the engine, without departing from the spir1t or sacrificing any of the advantages of the 1nvention, hereinabove set forth. The separate intake nozzles 8 and 9, which are substantially tangential to the rotor in the cas-- ing 7, provide for actuating said rotor in either direction, While the pawl 20 by be1ng made reversible is capable of operating m either direction on the shaft of the generator.

What is claimed is:

1. The combination with an internal combustion engine, of ignition mechanism for the same comprising a rotary electric generator, a friction" wheel loose on the shaft of the generator, a friction clutch automatically controlled by the speed of said shaft operating to throw said frictionwheel and shaft into and out of driving engagement,

and a motor independent of the en'glne for the engine for driving the shaft of the gen-' erator preparatory to thedriving action of the friction wheel, the governor embodying.

a pair of frame members in spaced relation to each other and slidable on said shaft, one of said members being movable into and out of engagement with a friction face on said wheel, an expansion spring for spreading said frame members apart, and governor arms acting to press said members toward v each other.

3. The combination with an internal combustion engine, of ignition mechanism forthe same comprising a rotary electric generator, a friction wheel loose on the shaft of the generator, a clutch including a'speed governor automatically controlled by the speed of said shaft operating to throw said friction wheel and shaft into and out of driving engagement, and a motor independent of the engine for driving the shaft of the generator preparatory to the driving action of the friction wheel, the governor embodying a pair of frame members in spaced relation to each other and slidable on said shaft, one of said members being movable into and out of engagement witha friction face on said wheel, an expansion spring for .40

spreading said frame members apart, 0 ernor arms acting to press said mem rs toward each other, a ratchet wheel on said shaft, a pawl carrier normally loose on said shaft and adapted to be engaged by one of said frame members, and a pawl on said carrier.

4. The combination with an internal combustion engine, of ignition mechanism forthe same comprising a rotary electric enerator, a friction wheel loose on the aft of the generator, a clutch includi a speed governor automatically controlldig ipeed of said shaft operating to throw said riction wheel and shaft into andout of driv- .by the ing. engagement, and a motor independent of the engine for driving the shaft of the gener ator. preparatory to the driving action of the friction wheel, the governor embodying a pair of frame members in spaced relation to each other and slidable on said shaft one of said members being movable into and out of engagement with a friction face on said wheel, an expansion spring for spreading said frame members apart, governor arms acting to press said members toward each other, a ratchet wheel on said shaft, apawl carrier normally loose on said shaft and adapted to be engaged by one of said frame members, and a reversible pawl on said carrier.

In testimony whereof I afiix m yfsignature 1n presence of two witnesses.

' LOREN E. CLARK.

Witnesses:

JOHN M. KRIDER, HAROLD B. CLARK.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

' Washington, D. O. 

